Crispy Pork Belly and Watermelon Salad | Recipe

What

Recipe for Crispy Pork Belly and Watermelon Salad from Fatty Crab chef/owner Zak Pelaccio.

Why

Much written about, still loved, this seemingly counter-intuitive combination of salty pork belly with cool refreshing watermelon makes perfect sense.

Fatty Crab & Fatty ‘Cue - New York, NY

Crispy Pork Belly & Watermelon Salad

Courtesy of chef Zak Pelaccio

Begin a day or two ahead by pickling the watermelon rind and then marinating the pork belly. Kecap Manis is a sweet thick soy sauce, available at Asian markets.

Ingredients

Pork Belly

- 3 lbs raw, uncured pork belly, skin on

- 2 cups kecap manis

- 6 tablespoons of Chinese black vinegar or rice vinegar

- 3 tablespoons of dark soy sauce

- 3 tablespoons of fish sauce

- Juice of 1 lime

Watermelon Salad

- 1 5-pound watermelon

- 2 cups rice wine vinegar

- 3 shallots, thinly sliced

- 2 Thai chilies, thinly slice

- 2 kaffir lime leaves

- 1 2-inch piece of fresh ginger root, peeled and sliced

- 1 round (1 ounce) of palm sugar or 2 tablespoons light brown sugar

- 1 tablespoon kosher salt

Dressing

- 1 ½ rounds of palm sugar (3 ounces) or 6 tablespoons light brown sugar

- 1 cup rice wine vinegar

- ½ cup freshly squeezed lime juice

- 1 4-inch piece of fresh ginger root, peeled and sliced

- 6 cilantro roots and 1 inch of stems, cleaned and trimmed

- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped

- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt

- 8 cups of peanut oil for frying

- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, seasoned with salt and pepper

- 3 scallions, trimmed and sliced

- 1 cup torn Vietnamese Coriander leaves

- 1 cup torn Thai basil leaves

- ¼ cup sesame seeds

Directions

Marinate Pork Belly

1) Use a sharp knife to cut Xs into the skin of the pork belly, each about ¼ inch deep and ½ inch apart.

2) Place the pork, skin side down, in a glass or Pyrex bowl or casserole.

3) Whisk together the kecap manis, vinegar, soy sauce, fish sauce, and lime juice.

4) Pour over the pork belly, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 to 48 hours, turning several times.

Watermelon

1) Cut the flesh of the watermelon into 1-inch pieces (discarding whatever seeds you can without tearing into the watermelon cubes).

2) Refrigerate the flesh.

3) Remove the outer green skin of the rind and discard. Cut the white part of the rind into ½-inch cubes. Transfer the diced rind to a heatproof bowl.

4) In a saucepan over medium heat, combine rice wine vinegars, shallots, chilies, kaffir lime leaves, ginger, palm sugar, salt and 1 cup of water.

5) Bring to a boil and cook until sugar dissolves.

6) Strain the liquid over the diced rind. Let cool, and then chill for at least one hour or up to 2 days to pickle the rind.

Cook Pork Belly [This can be done a day ahead and refrigerated]

1) Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F.

2) Transfer the pork to a clean baking dish, skin side up.

3) Pour 2 cups of the marinade over and then add 2 cups of water, (the liquid should come halfway up the pork belly, if it doesn’t add a little more water or use a smaller pan).

4) Cover the pan with foil and bring to a boil on the stove top, the foil will slightly puff when the liquid is boiling.

5) Place pan in oven and braise until a skewer penetrates the pork with little to no resistance, between 4 to 5 hours.

6) Transfer pork to a rack set over a baking tray to cool.

7) When cool enough to handle, use a sharp straight-bladed knife to cut the pork belly into 1-inch chunks.

Dressing

1) Roughly crush the palm sugar using a mortar and pestle or a plastic bag and a rolling pin.

2) In a food processor, combine the sugar with the vinegar, limejuice, ginger, cilantro, garlic, and salt. Pulse until smooth and well combined.

3) In a large, straight-sided sauté pan or wok, heat 3 inches of oil to 375 degrees F.

4) Lightly dust the cubed pork belly with well-seasoned flour, shaking off the excess.

5) Working in batches, fry the pork belly until very crisp and a deep golden brown, 6 to 7 minutes.

6) Use a slotted spoon to transfer to a paper towel lined tray to drain. Season the fried pork with salt.

7) In a mixing bowl, toss the chilled watermelon flesh with enough dressing to coat.

Plate

1) Dividing the pork between 8 serving plates.

2) Top each with the watermelon flesh and a few cubes of the pickled rind.

3) Drizzle additional dressing around the plate.

4) Garnish each dish with scallions, coriander leaves, basil, and sesame seeds.

5) Serve immediately.

Crispy Pork Belly and Watermelon Salad | Recipe - Find. Eat. Drink. (2024)